The prolonged governance dispute that began when Aave Labs redirected swap fees away from the DAO treasury in December has come to an end, with the community voting in favor of the Aave Will Win proposal. This proposal, deemed the most significant in Aave's history by founder Stani Kulechov, establishes a framework that redirects 100% of revenue from all Aave-branded products back to the DAO, consolidating economic rights under the AAVE token. As a result, the DAO is now responsible for funding Aave Labs' activities, with the proposal approving a $25 million stablecoin grant and a 5,000 AAVE token allocation to Aave Labs. The Aave DAO, a community-run decision-making body, manages the Aave lending protocol, enabling token holders to vote on key decisions such as upgrades, fees, and treasury use.
The Aave Will Win proposal has resolved the dispute by decisively favoring token holders, with protocol revenue now supplemented by application-layer revenue from Aave Pro, Aave App, Horizon, and Aave Kit. The proposal also introduces measures to prevent value leakage, ensuring that service providers build exclusively for Aave and adhere to measurable goals. Technical advancements, including Aave V4's reinvestment feature and the introduction of Spokes, are expected to generate additional revenue streams and expand collateral options.
With roughly $25 billion in total value locked across multiple chains, Aave aims to scale from $40 billion to $1 trillion, positioning itself as a comprehensive financial network.